Mexican American Studies

MAS, or Mexican American Studies, is a curriculum in Tucson Unified School District, Arizona that is directed for Latino Americans in helping them achieve a higher education. The statistics show that 97% of students graduate from high school (compared to 44% nationally) and 70% enter college (24% nationally). The school board in Tucson, “...presents material from perspectives and experiences of Chicanos as well as from other ethnic and cultural groups,” leaving kids inspired about their own heritage and culture, as well as other cultures. This curriculum was shut down because of unclear issues. “Acosta and other teachers tried over the years to meet with school board member and the state superintendent of public instruction to find out what precisely in the curriculum was objectionable,” Acosta goes on to say that no one ever came to them and said, “I’m uncomfortable with this lesson you are teaching.” He then says that Mr. Horne has no clue what they’re teaching. A few books that teachers had their students read were even banned for false reasons, “Let Their Spirits Dance, by Duarte, officials said there was a questionable sex scene in the book,” but then Sotelo goes on to say there is no such scene, and then asked the officials if they had ever read the book, “they said no.” The only way the program could be threatening to some people (in my opinion), is if they are uncomfortable with learning about Mexican culture and their take on our country.

Wrapping Up

The major point to get across here, that both Rose and Lewis Black are clearly saying, is that too many times schools are resorting to a ‘quick fix’. This might involve new facilities that may cost a million dollars, or new technology in the classroom to encourage more efficient learning. Both of these ‘fixes’ don’t really fix much of anything. Sure they’re nice, but what Rose and Black are getting to is that students in our schools need, “.. an engaging and challenging education in 2011.” 

How might this be accomplished? Well Rose flutters across ideas that inhibit excitement toward the ‘quick fixes’, that the papers in his hometown and elsewhere would look skeptically at these new ideas until there’s proof, and not just statistically measured by standardized testing. Freire, in my humble opinion, would flat out agree to Rose’s statement because he would look with hostility toward the method of standardized testing. He wrote a whole essay about how the ‘Banking Method of Education’ was an awful way of preparing young minds. Standardized testing is the test for how well the Banking Method was given.

Mike rose gives his opinion on the people trying to change school quickly, “To have the media, middle-brow and high-brow, quit giving such a free pass to the claims and initiatives of the Department of Education and school reformers,” essentially saying that we should do much more research before we spend time and money on the next big idea.

The Arts

Keith is saying to me, that the liberal arts are a way of making the now, the present, what it going on at this moment in your life a bit more meaningful than it was before. He states that these types of curricula help students think differently about society, maybe even revolutionary. Du Bois even gave Platonic ideals credit because they, "destroyed feudalism, leveled serfdom, scorched aristocracy, melted crowns, took hold of the heart of William Wilberforce and burned into the soul of William Lloyd Garrison and the slave went forth a man". This kind of education is a major factor in our society and the minds of our young citizens. Keith Gilyard ends saying that, science and mathematical education is very important for production and financial strength in our country however, but for the benefit of the people living in it, the arts are a wondrous thing.

My Role In Education?

The cause and effect techniques talked about in the reading are useful tools that allow a writer to analyze a topic then dissect the effects or causes from it. For example, the topic of our third paper is about our role in education, you could say some causes of teacher and student misunderstanding are the student's unwillingness to cooperate from family/home problems, the teacher's style of conducting class, peer pressure, or serious insecurities. You could then take those points and expand them, explaining why they are causes of a classroom anarchy. Arguing using cause and effect helps the reader along the lines of your own thinking; logically, cat goes to hat, from hat goes to spatula, from spatula goes to foot, each noun replaced by the causes of the point you're trying to make. 'Spelling it out' to someone with logical cause and effect strategies make a diverse and legible persuasive paper.

To Make A Difference

If you're trying to change how our country's education system works overnight, or even in a few years, it's not going to happen, not that quickly at least. But I think that if each and every teacher gets their teaching credentials because they love teaching and they love kids, our schools could be vastly different. If each teacher, adviser  coach, administrator, and superintendent does their absolute best to relate to each other, work through learning blockades, and work to inspire the kids that attend their institutions, kids will be exhaling A's. It's not about the teacher's personal attributes as much as how much that teacher cares about their students, and how much they want them to succeed. From a student's standpoint, my favorite teachers are the ones that made me work my anus off, and they inspired me to do my absolute best and helped me along the way. I think the critical point here is that teachers make the difference. Not necessarily the quality of books, gym equipment, waxed floors, or the plasma screen TV's that bloat your screen at lunch time.

A Real Education Experience

Barry Boyce has a definite point, whether you're comfortable with the Buddhist tradition and techniques or not. Meditation is beyond religion, it's a contemplative process that involves looking inside yourself at a current point in time and asking questions like, "Why am I feeling this way? Why am I talking this way? And what can I do to change that?" Questions like these can help anyone decipher their emotions, including children. Although, children most likely aren't in a work stress environment, they might be stressed with schoolwork, relationships, or family problems. Early development of those inside questions ("Why am I feeling this way?") can help kids digest issues outside their own space, and possible help them grow into more empathetic and understanding adults. Education is all about cooperation, and understanding another person's point of few is key to a healthy learning career.

The Gift of Grit

I think what Jerry Large is getting at is more than just an analysis of grades and what kind of character contributes, but also career paths to success later in life, "The presence or absence of those qualities is a better indicator of future success than test scores or IQ." Grit in character, according to Large, "... is one of the characteristics of successful people." The children that received too much grit, however, tend to feel overly stressed. The fine balance between just enough absence and just enough motherly fatherly comfort is necessary to sustain a healthy development of character and learning in a young child's mind. Those who find the balance, may just have a happier and possibly more striving child.

Similarities Between Smitherman and Superheros

I find schools like Kipp Prep who work in impoverished neighborhoods to bring students to their full capacity very similar to how Smitherman describes African American English. Because this sub-dialect of English isn't 'book' standard, or 'correct' in schools, we require the standard version of English (or informally called White English) the valid writing language. Smitherman is saying that the type of English she speaks is very much valid in how she was raised, talks to her family and friends, and is a part of her culture so she defends it. In the same way, the neighborhoods and communities that are in poverty aren't expected to score high in school or succeed, and some schools and staff are trying to show the invalidity in that. They're trying to show that, even though they may not have access to the best facilities, or sports equipment, they have the brain power to do well and chase their dreams.

Wondrous Mentors (Final Draft)

Intellectual creative thought, that's what keeps us humans truly alive. Mentors that posses this desire for free thinking, out of the norm responses, and true colorful expression are extremely valuable in today's world. These people guide young minds to their own conclusions, for them to decide what is right and wrong in their own eyes, and to experience the world as such. My teacher Mr. Davis and Mr. Keating are both made up of imagination, creativity, and unabashed enthusiasm making them unmatched mentors.

Imagination, the key source of ideas, land of marveled fantasy, childlike, and fervent unadulterated goals. Teachers that wish to be good teachers need imagination. To open their own minds to a world of possibilities that are impossible, so that their students may follow and open their minds as well. Mr. Keating is a bustling economy of words. He will even improv a poetic remark on the spot to clarify his point, “"But only in their dreams can men be truly free, twas always thus and always thus will be” he said to a fellow teacher that didn’t approve of Keating teaching his boys to think for themselves and have dreams. My teacher Mr. Davis, too,  is like a two year old with an endless disposal of crayons and paper. When he talks, he comes up with a scenario that puts you right in the moment, completely unwinding you from linear thinking, to the made up story he unfolds for himself, much less others. The end of his stories are faded, blurred, and sneaky. They creep upon you when you least expect it. He creates unease, suspense, and inspiration that all tie together in the end which I have benefited from when I sit down to write a paper.

The mark of a creative mind is one who can think abstractly and intellectually, but deliberately tie all loose ends together creating one whole story, with a deep winding inside, and a neat outline from the outside. Mr. Keating sees the potential futures of the boys he instructs, and encourages them on paths that they have not yet seen. “But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for... That the powerful play *goes on* and you may contribute a verse. What will your verse be?” Mr. Keating asked his class. He finds a time and place to explain his approach, a different approach to poetry and language, that it might be a heavily passionate endeavour that all humans could relate to. He creatively weaves together a description, persuasive real world application, and then turns and asks the boys how they are doing in the pursuit. My teacher Mr. Davis also constructs a way to get answers out of his students that even they wouldn’t expect. He has a few exercises that do just that, such as speed writing, which in reality has no structure whatsoever but is an excellent way of putting down thoughts and leaking abstract details from the subconscious that you wouldn’t normally see in a regular paper setting. Speed writing is done with randomized songs, a pen and paper, and an ear. The goal is to not think, but write. Listen to what is being played, how your emotional reaction is to it, what thoughts are whizzing through your cranium as they buzz, what the person next to you is doing, or colors that flash before your eyes when you tickle your pen across the parchment; nothing is too boring or random to be put down on paper. After a few songs have completed, you are to stop what you’re doing and read what you wrote. After outlining key subjects or descriptions in your paper, you are to write a poem describing everything you put down in a neat way. It’s an incredibly odd but rewarding exercise as I have come up with some totally original stuff that I would never put into words verbally.

The key to a successful story, poem, life, relationship, or anything that involves time, passion, and effort is enthusiasm. To mentor childrens’ minds means you have to be enthusiastic. Mr. Keating loves his boys, and cares about each and every one of them, though he doesn’t shelter them, and wants them to break out and learn for themselves. Like when he asks them why he stands upon his desk and Charlie says ‘to feel taller,’and Mr. Keating replies, “No! Thank you for playing Mr. Dalton. I stand upon my desk to remind myself that we must constantly look at things in a different way.” Mr. Keating is enthusiastic about his students, but also their outlook on life and the world around them. His enthusiasm for his own perspective creates desire in others. Mr. Davis has a similar way of doing the same thing. He talks individually to any of his students if they’re having a hard time coming up with something original, or can’t see something from a different angle. He gives examples, or exercises you can do outside of school to get a grasp at what other people might go through. One of his assignments was to visit a city outside of Poulsbo, go sight-seeing, write down songs you heard playing on the radio at a gas station, the kind of people you saw getting coffee or crossing the street, the kind of signs you saw that were abnormal, local restaurant names and recreational areas, sounds and smells of that region you were in, and write down anything extra that struck you as exciting or new. Some of us couldn’t think of a city to pick, so he would list suggestions (places like Seabeck!) and helped out wherever possible to make this assignment do-able. Everyone that did the worksheet, wrote down places, things, names, and then wrote a poem out of it, came back with a whole new approach to thinking about poetry, places, and people (or at least I did).

Mr. Davis and Mr. Keating are different when it comes to their teaching styles. Where Mr. Keating is teaching in a high esteemed private school, Mr. Davis is teaching in a messy high-school where most kids take Creative Writing for an easy A or a place where it won’t take much brain power (though those kids failed the course). Keating is trying to demonstrate to his kids that it’s okay to let go, and take a chance, “Boys, you must strive to find your own voice. Because the longer you wait to begin, the less likely you are to find it at all. Thoreau said, ‘Most men lead lives of quiet desperation.’ Don't be resigned to that. Break out!” Where Davis brings the crazy public school kids together in one poetic way and looks to squeeze the best out of them for their own benefit. Mr. Keating and Mr. Davis are my most inspirational mentors.

Works Cited:

Dead Poets Society. Dir. Peter Weir. Perf. Robin Williams, Robert Sean Leonard, Ethan Hawke. Touchstone Pictures, 1989. DVD

Wondrous Teachers (Rough Draft)

Intellectual creative thought, that's what keeps us humans truly alive. Mentors that posses this desire for free thinking, out of the norm responses, and true colorful expression are extremely valuable in today's world. These people guide young minds to their own conclusions, for them to decide what is right and wrong in their own eyes, and to experience the world as such. My teacher Mr. Davis and Mr. Keating are both made up of imagination, creativity, and unabashed enthusiasm making them unmatched mentors.

Imagination, the key source of ideas, land of marveled fantasy, childlike, and fervent unadulterated goals. Teachers that wish to be good teachers need imagination. To open their own minds to a world of possibilities that are impossible, so that their students may follow and open their minds as well. Mr. Keating is a bustling economy of words. He will even improv a poetic remark on the spot to clarify his point, “"But only in their dreams can men be truly free, twas always thus and always thus will be” he said to a fellow teacher that didn’t approve of Keating teaching his boys to think for themselves and have dreams. My teacher Mr. Davis, too,  is like a two year old with an endless disposal of crayons and paper. When he talks, he comes up with a scenario that puts you right in the moment, completely unwinding you from linear thinking, to the made up story he unfolds for himself, much less others. The end of his stories are faded, blurred, and sneaky. They creep upon you when you least expect it. He creates unease, suspense, and inspiration that all tie together in the end which I have benefited from when I sit down to write a paper.

    The mark of a creative mind is one who can think abstractly and intellectually, but deliberately tie all loose ends together creating one whole story, with a deep winding inside, and a neat outline from the outside. Mr. Keating sees the potential futures of the boys he instructs, and encourages them on paths that they have not yet seen. “But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for... That the powerful play *goes on* and you may contribute a verse. What will your verse be?” Mr. Keating asked his class. He finds a time and place to explain his approach, a different approach to poetry and language, that it might be a heavily passionate endeavour that all humans could relate to. He creatively weaves together a description, persuasive real world application, and then turns and asks the boys how they are doing in the pursuit. My teacher Mr. Davis also find a way to get answers out of his students that even they wouldn’t expect. He has a few exercises that do just that, such as speed writing, which in reality has no structure whatsoever but is an excellent way of putting down thoughts and leaking abstract details from the subconscious that you wouldn’t normally see in a regular paper setting. Speed writing is done with randomized songs, a pen and paper, and an ear. The goal is to not think, but write. Listen to what is being played, how your emotional reaction is to it, what thoughts are whizzing through your cranium as they buzz, what the person next to you is doing, or colors that flash before your eyes when you tickle your pen across the parchment; nothing is too boring or random to be put down on paper. After a few songs have completed, you are to stop what you’re doing and read what you wrote. After outlining key subjects or descriptions in your paper, you are to write a poem describing everything you put down in a neat way. It’s an incredibly odd but rewarding exercise as I have come up with some totally original stuff that I would never put into words verbally.

    The key to a successful story, poem, life, relationship, or anything that involves time, passion, and effort is enthusiasm. To be a mentor of childrens’ minds you have to be enthusiastic, or at least to be a good one. Mr. Keating loves his boys, and cares about each and every one of them, though he doesn’t shelter them, and wants them to break out and learn for themselves. Like when he asks them why he stands upon his desk and Charlie says ‘to feel taller,’and Mr. Keating replies, “No! Thank you for playing Mr. Dalton. I stand upon my desk to remind myself that we must constantly look at things in a different way.” Mr. Keating is enthusiastic about his students, but also their outlook on life and the world around them. His enthusiasm for his own perspective creates desire in others. Mr. Davis has a similar way of doing the same thing. He talks individually to any of his students if they’re having a hard time coming up with something original, or can’t see something from a different angle. He gives examples, or exercises you can do outside of school to get a grasp at what other people might go through. One of his assignments was to visit a city outside of Poulsbo, go sight-seeing, write down songs you heard playing on the radio at a gas station, the kind of people you saw getting coffee or crossing the street, the kind of signs you saw that were abnormal, local restaurant names and recreational areas, sounds and smells of that region you were in, and write down anything extra that struck you as exciting or new. Some of us couldn’t think of a city to pick, so he would list suggestions (places like Seabeck!) and helped out wherever possible to make this assignment do-able. Everyone that did the worksheet, wrote down places, things, names, and then wrote a poem out of it, came back with a whole new approach to thinking about poetry, places, and people (or at least I did).

Mr. Davis and Mr. Keating are different when it comes to their teaching styles. Where Mr. Keating is teaching in a high esteemed private school, Mr. Davis is teaching in a messy high-school where most kids take Creative Writing for an easy A or a place where it won’t take much brain power (though those kids failed the course). Keating is trying to demonstrate to his kids that it’s okay to let go, and take a chance, “Boys, you must strive to find your own voice. Because the longer you wait to begin, the less likely you are to find it at all. Thoreau said, ‘Most men lead lives of quiet desperation.’ Don't be resigned to that. Break out!” Where Davis brings the crazy public school kids together in one poetic way and looks to squeeze the best out of them for their own benefit. Mr. Keating and Mr. Davis are my most inspirational mentors.

Freire And Standard Tests

I think a better question is what would Freire be happy about in today's schools. Standardized tests spell out exactly what he demonstrated. They encourage spoon fed alien knowledge that is regurgitated when they ask for it. As he calls it, "the Banking Concept of Education". There are very few instructors that have the opportunity or guts to have a Socratic set up classroom, or a classroom that encourages a student to think for himself/herself and question established beliefs. Because of the amount of students public schools now have keep increasing, standardized tests have become a way of obtaining a general idea of how our schools in the U.S. are doing internationally.

In a way though, this has poised a problem to our students creativity; one of the most important aspects of human nature, and very valuable to entrepreneurial goals, whether they be in business, art, or science. Many teachers also reject experimentation with real world connections, "... Thus they react almost instinctively against any experiment in education which stimulates the critical faculties and is not content with a partial view of reality but always seeks out the ties which link one point to another and one problem to another". As Freire explains, "It follows logically from the banking notion of consciousness, that the educator's role is to regulate the way the world 'enters into' the students," meaning that the way students see the world from a classroom perspective, is regulated by the teacher. This can be dangerous when the students enter into the REAL world and have to take it on from their own perspective.

Wondrous Instructors (Intro P)

Intellectual creative thought, that's what keeps us humans truly alive. Mentors that posses this desire for free thinking, out of the norm responses, and true colorful expression are extremely valuable in today's world. These people guide young minds to their own conclusions, for them to decide what is right and wrong in their own eyes, and to experience the world as such. My teacher Mr. Davis and Mr. Keating are both made up of imagination, creativity, and unabashed enthusiasm making them unmatched mentors.